Solitary Restaurant

The Solitary Restaurant sits, naturally enough, in splendid isolation at the top of a hill near Katoomba in the Blue Mountains, with spectacular views. It's decorated in muted shades ("hot chocolate" or "mushroom" according to your preference) in a strangely old-fashioned but contemporary style. A group of us arrived seeking shelter on an unseasonally cold and windy day, and enjoyed, variously, tasty smoked fish soup, rich and fragrant banana bread with honey butter, and a moist chocolate brownie with vanilla bean ice cream. In case you wondered what might have been on offer at the Solitary for New Year's Eve in 1975, the menu is reproduced for your edification.

Clovelly Hotel

The Clovelly Hotel is a nice place to spend a Sunday afternoon; it's a huge space, with three distinct bars, a large dining area, and plenty of outside seating, much of it with a view of the sea. The decor is simple and not particularly exciting, although there were some interesting features: bunches of twigs as lightshades and shadows thrown by the metal light fittings above the bar which, according to the bouncer, Matt, were "extremely expensive". The food (at the restaurant known as The Blue Groper) was good for somewhere which clearly caters in quantity: there were perfectly cooked kangaroo steaks with sweet potato mash; salmon with chips; nachos (which were, however, "disappointing"); and my choice, tagliatelli marinara, which contained plenty of interesting seafood and had a nicely piquant sauce.

Cabramatta – Food

Thanh Bình is a Chinese-Vietnamese restaurant with a branch in Newtown and one in Cabramatta, at 52 John Street, where I had lunch with my friends A and X. X (her real initial) is part-Vietnamese and ordered for us: juicy prawn rice paper rolls, noodles with roast pork and spring rolls (liberally garnished with mint), tart, refreshing lime soda, and the most dazzling dish, fresh, raw beef salad with mint and lime dressing served in a cabbage-leaf bowl and looking like a weird, but tasty, flower. Further pictures from around the markets on John Street.